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Sculpting - ****
MOTUC is defined by its chronic parts reuse. Mattel does a
pretty good job keeping new tooling to a minimum while still making
every figure seem like something unique, and Fang Man is no
exception. he's actually got a lot of new parts,
though! He uses Whiplash's scaly torso, Fisto's biceps (with
a new one sculpted to match the other), Demo-Man's hands, and pretty
basic legs and boots. His loincloth and shirt are totally
unique, and he has a very interesting head and neck - he has a separate
neck piece that really changes his whole shape. Fang Man's
shirt also adds some ridges on his spine and hunches him forward a
little, in keeping with the neck - you almost couldn't believe that he
has a basic He-Man body with all these changes!
Since this is a line based on a silly '80s cartoon, it probably sounds
strange to say that Fang Man is one of the most cartoonish figures out
there. But hey, he is! The Four Horsemen have done
a fantastic job translating Fang Man's appearance into plastic, and he
pretty much looks like he fell out of the TV! But since MOTUC
is slightly more detailed than the original cartoon, they've made a few
concessions. Fang Man's hide is wrinkly and textured, and his
clothing has some surprisingly good detailing, especially where those
spikes on his back push through. He's just realistic enough
to fit with other figures in the line, but still cartoony enough to
look just like the cartoon character! Fang Man's got an angry
face, though he also looks a little dim. I love how he even
has his cartoon counterpart's chipmunk cheeks, which is kind of
funny! Because of his neck and the shape of his shirt, he's
clearly meant to be hunched over a little, but he looks great in that
pose.
Paint - ***
This rating might be a little controversial, since some people have
complaints about fang Man's paint job. But the thing is, the
details that they dislike are all things that he had in the cartoon, so
I can't fault them for accuracy! Though in light of the
complaints, I'll let it cost him a star. I don't mind it, but
enough people do. Fang Man is a BLUE figure in the same way
that Demo-Man was GREEN. He's got a different shade of blue
for his spikes, but overall you're gonna be looking at his baby blue
skin most of the time. His clothes are maroon and dull
yellow, with bright orange for the collar and wristbands. His
tongue is nice and glossy, so it looks wet, and his eyes are
yellow. the eyes really add to the cartoon aspect of the
figure... but again, that's just how he appeared. I really
like the little details on Fang Man, like the rust on his belt buckle
or the paint wash on his head that brings out the details.
Articulation - ****
Fang Man has typical MOTUC articulation, with some extra added because
of his different construction - He’s got swivel/ball-jointed shoulders,
pegged elbows, swivel wrists, an ab crunch, waist rotation,
ball-jointed hips, pegged knees, swivel shins, “rocker” ankles and
feet, a ball-jointed head, an extra ball joint for his neck (though
it's more like a swivel), and a swivel tongue. That tongue's
all kinds of awesome! You can move it past his fangs to
either side of his mouth, or let it hang in front - all of those poses
are accurate to the cartoon, but more importantly they can change Fang
Man from a hissing snake monster to a lobotomy patient! Poor,
poor Fang Man.
The ab crunch is a little limited, as he really needs to hunch over to
look right because of his neck, and because his shirt rides up his
bellybutton if you don't. The base neck joint is also a
little limited, but the second socket more than makes up for
it. Fang Man's articulation is great for this line, and the
movable tongue is just an awesome bonus!
Accessories - ****
One of the tough things about Masters of the Universe Classics is how
the accessories can really be a gamble. one figure might only
come with a repainted club, while another will have two heads and three
weapons! Fang Man lucked out pretty well - as well as his
shirt (armor counts as an accessory, right?), he has three unique
accessories!
Fang Man has a sword, which looks surprisingly serious for somebody as
goofy as him. It's actually the "Sword of the Ancients," an
artifact from another cartoon episode, though it's got Fang Man's belt
buckle insignia on the hilt, which is hilarious. It's a great
sword, and I could see a lot of figures wielding it! The next
thing he has is this odd little slingshot device that he never used in
the cartoon, but was on his original model sheet - it's supposed to be
some sort of force field generator, but it just looks vaguely
obscene. It's still nice that he has it, though.
Outfit - ****
Concerning Fang Man's shirt, it has lumps sculpted in to
represent the ridges on his spine, which are not sculpted on his actual
torso. So, Fang Man's wearing falsies? It's fully
removable, but kind of annoying to get back on, and you probably won't
want to remove it because he looks goofy without it.
Design/Quality - ****
Fang Man is a great example of how you can take something as
seemingly-limited as the MOTUC body type, and create a whole new
creature out of it. He's also a great representation of his
appearance in the cartoon, which is more than most people would expect.
Fun Factor - ****
He has a movable tongue. That says everything.
But seriously, Fang Man is a lot of fun - if he were readily available
in stores, he'd make a great toy for a kid. It's pretty sad
that he isn't, in fact.
Value - **
Every time I look at the price of a Masters of the Universe Classics
figure, I am reminded of a movie quote:
"Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown."
Fang Man was about $25 for subscribers, not counting shipping or
tax. That's a little less than the $27 non-subscribers have
to pay for day-of-sale figures (which inflates to $40 after shipping
and tax), but...hehehehh... guess who never got a day of sale? Fang Man
WAS a "mere" $50 on Big Bad Toy Store, but he's out of stock.
So you're relaly gonna have to trawl eBay, and pay $60-$70 for him.
Forget it, Michael. It's Mattel.
Things to Watch Out For -
I've heard that some Fang Men have a brittle neck joint (the one by his
head), but mine seems fine. Also, when you move his tongue
past his teeth, take care not to scrape the paint off those fangs.
Overall - ****
Price issues aside (ARRGH), this is really an awesome figure!
I got my Fang Man on the same day as my Snake Face, and both are two of
the best Masters of the Universe Classics figures I've seen, up there
with greats like Draego-Man and Mer-Man! If not for the
insanely prohibitive price, I'd recommend this guy in a
heartbeat! And of course, since I got him at barely above
subscriber cost, I can brag.
Hey, wait a second. Can Fang Man control and ride ALL
dragons? So... what about Draego-Man?
Score Recap:
Packaging - ****
Sculpting - ****
Paint - ***
Articulation - ****
Accessories - ****
Outfit - ****
Design/Quality - ****
Fun Factor - ****
Value - **
Overall - ****
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